McLaren Bariatric and Metabolic Institute has a Point of Service Self-Pay Option for bariatric surgery. This program and the pricing for our surgical options offered include:

• All customary hospital charges for surgical procedure
• Your pre-surgical and post-surgical clinical visits in our Bariatric and Metabolic Institute (up to 90 days post-procedure)
• Required psychological and behavioral modification analysis
• Various medical professional fees for those who participate in your care
• Web-based access for pre- and post-surgical information
• 24 hour access to bariatric surgeon

Note: Prior to finalizing a particular procedure, all potential surgical candidates must be screened by one of our surgeons. Upon review, the surgeon has the right to refuse treatment based on patients’ pre-existing medical condition(s) or risk factor(s) associated with the desired procedure.

The McLaren Bariatric and Metabolic Institute offers a complete care package, highly skilled surgeons, an expert support staff, and the most advanced surgical options at an award winning hospital-all at a very competitive price. For a price quote, call toll-free, 1-888-342-5470 during business hours. A member at the Institute will be happy to answer any questions.

Financing

To assist you with financing your bariatric surgery as a self-paying patient, we have established relationships with both commercial lenders and medical specialty lenders specializing in bariatric surgery. If you chose to work with one of these lenders, the relationship, terms, and obligations are strictly between you and the lender you choose, They in-turn provide us with the agreed upon rate for the surgical services received, based on the Personal Patient Agreement accepted by both you and McLaren Bariatric and Metabolic Institute.

Since every insurance policy is unique, it's important that you thoroughly understand your certificate of coverage to know exactly what is and isn't covered through your plan.

To determine your eligibility, contact your insurance carrier. The contact phone number is usually located on the back of your medical insurance card.

To qualify for insurance coverage, many insurers require patients to have a history of medically supervised weight loss efforts.

Keep track of every visit you make to a healthcare professional for obesity-related issues or visits to supervised weight loss programs. Make note of other weight loss attempts made through diet centers and fitness club memberships. Keep good records, including receipts.

If your bariatric surgeon recommends bariatric surgery, he or she will prepare a letter to obtain preauthorization from your insurance company. The goal of this letter is to establish the medical necessity of bariatric surgery and gain approval for the procedure. The following information is generally included in the preauthorization letter:

• Your height, weight, and Body Mass Index, and any documentation you might have as to how long you have been overweight.
• Simply describing your condition as morbid obesity is not enough. A full description of all your obesity-related health conditions, including records of treatment, a history of medications taken, and documentation of how these conditions affect your everyday life, is necessary.
• A detailed report of how your excess weight affects daily activities, such as walking, tying your shoes, or maintaining personal hygiene.
• A detailed history of the results of your dieting efforts, including medically and nonmedically supervised programs, medical records, and records you may have kept of payments to and meetings you’ve attended with commercial weight loss programs.
• A history of exercise programs, including receipts for gym memberships.
• Ask your doctor to include clinical information about how effective bariatric surgery can be, particularly the control or loss of obesity-related health conditions.

Normally, your insurance provider will respond to your request within 30 days. You should schedule a follow-up if you have not heard from your insurance company in that amount of time.

If your insurance company denies your request, you can make an appeal. At this point, consider hiring an insurance lawyer or insurance advocate, both of whom can be very helpful. The insurance lawyer or advocate should have an in-depth understanding of the appeals process, as well as any laws that apply, and how to go about responding to the insurance company. With some insurance carriers, the number of appeals that you can make is limited. So be sure to learn as much as possible about the appeals process ahead of time.

At the end of this stage, with the help of a bariatric surgeon, you will know if you qualify for surgery.